Jen's Weekend Drafts: On Wintering.

+ON WINTERING: The morning after my final book tour stop last week, I woke up and felt like I’d toggled into hibernation mode. The book’s celebration now done, it is time to hunker down into my full fall and winter self. Magpies, there are season and micro-seasons for everything. I found myself visiting with Katherine May and her words on the concept of wintering:

A few lines I love from her work:

“We have seasons when we flourish and seasons when the leaves fall from us, revealing our bare bones. Given time, they grow again.” (Katherine May)

“Plants and animals don’t fight the winter; they don’t pretend it’s not happening and attempt to carry on living the same lives that they lived in the summer. They prepare. They adapt. They perform extraordinary acts of metamorphosis to get them through. Winter is a time of withdrawing from the world, maximising scant resources, carrying out acts of brutal efficiency and vanishing from sight; but that’s where the transformation occurs. Winter is not the death of the life cycle, but its crucible.” (Katherine May)

“Doing those deeply unfashionable things—slowing down, letting your spare time expand, getting enough sleep, resting—is a radical act now, but it is essential.” (Katherine May)

+BIRD HARDWARE?! OMG, I swooned over these bird sink taps in this gorgeous bathroom designed by Lisa Sokol. Are you kidding?! I love the echo of the bird motif in the planter and the wing detailing on the mirror!

+FIRST LOOK AT HOLIDAY! Calling all anticipators: I’ve been putting together gift ideas, festive dressing finds, and a holiday home decor edit over on ShopMy! Will be sharing more in the coming weeks but in case you’re already on the hunt, you can get an early start with some inspiration over there.

+MY INTERVIEW WITH THE HIDDEN WHY: A few weeks ago, Leigh invited me onto his podcast, The Hidden Why. I loved the premise. (Isn’t it what I spend all my days doing? Looking for the miracle in the mundane, the asterism in the night sky?!). You can listen to our conversation here. I still can’t believe he naturally wakes at 5:30 a.m., no alarm needed. He summarized my key points in the chat with this:

“Fulfillment doesn’t always require dramatic reinvention. Sometimes it begins by noticing the light on the floor, eating lunch away from your desk, stepping outside without your phone, or simply naming something small that you love.”

Amen!

+WINTER BEDDING SALE: Tiered sale ($50 off $299+, $150 off $599, etc) at Boll and Branch. I cannot recommend you order one of these waffle bed blankets MORE. A winter hibernation must. You all have also been living these crisp, cool sheets I’ve been raving about with the chic and luxe hotel-style piping at the edge. Bailey Quin calls a well-made bed a “biscuit” — lol! I always think of her when I stare longingly at my own bed. Anyway, all my “bed biscuit” faves here.

+THAT LITTLE BEAST, THE POEM: I absolutely loved this Mary Oliver I came across this week, especially this stanza:

This is very much the line of thinking that undergirds my “let them be those little blackberry thickets” writings:

“I am thinking mainly of my children and their easy ways of being. The way my son watches a movie while draped at odd angles on the couch. The way my daughter leaves her hair wavy and wild. Their squinting, silly jokes and exaggerated noises. There is nothing to correct. This morning, over coffee, a friend told me something that had sent her heart echoing: “Listen when your children are telling you who they are.” Let them be those little blackberry thickets.

I am thinking also of my own writing. Editing is one thing, but — may I always make room for the unexpected. May I not be drawn to tame the weirdness out. Sometimes I weedwack my way through a dense spinney of words with the red pen only to realize that the coppice version is less appealing to the nest-building mind. Not everything is best pared back. The imagination thrives in shadowlands, or at least in spaces with many branches from which to fly.”

Let the wild heart beat where and how it wants.

+SATURDAY SHOPPING FINDS:

+Had so many DMs about this knit vest I wore over a button-down this week! I thought it was so cool and unusual, and I loved the green color.

+Found our favorite sweatpant-level-comfortable wide leg jeans 30% off here!!! Run TTS. Divine. My favorite jeans to write in. Wear from dawn to dusk in perfect comfort.

+Dehanche belts, 30% off!!! These are the chicest belts. Beautifully made — the quality and craftsmanship is incredible. Please someone get this leopard calf-hair one?! But the classic brown leather is a forever piece.

+Love the new arrivals at Loeffler — the blue/brown colorstory is gorgeous! I know I just published an outerwear edit but this gingham puffer jacket…!

+I have a feeling Magpies will flock to this collab with the New York Public Library! This is perfect. Love the vintage vibes.

+While you’re there, they just launched a perfect cashmere crewneck, under $200, in my two favorite colors of the season: a chartreuse/kiwi green and a rich purple. (Good look for less for my Alex Mill.)

+The best eyeglasses for petite faces.

+25% off Gwyn sweaters this weekend with code FALLKNITS. This slim belted cardigan is spectacular on!

+The season for sparkle! I love these bracelets (just restocked) so much — I’ve given as a gift to a few friends/sisters and they somehow work with everyone’s style. Or treat yourself to a little ear sparkle for the season! I wear these most days.

+THE ART OF THE PAPER CONE: I loved this recorded clip of Julia Child shopping for olives and the reminder that it is beautiful to do simple things well. There is art in everything!

+A BEAUTIFUL NEW WORD I COLLECTED THIS WEEK: Apricity! Discovered here. Stand by for its imminent appearance in my work.